I'd Settle For An Honest Mistake
by ThinAsADime
Summary: Sokka has been separated from the Gaang. Zuko has been ill for days, wandering around the streets of Ba Sing Se. When the two collide, sparks begin to fly. Quite literally.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: I own absolutely nothing involving the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender. I only own the plot and original characters. Thank you so much for reading!**

* * *

Zuko was vaguely aware of the fingers on his neck, dragging sweet relief down his flesh, but really he didn't particularly care for the feeling. Honestly, he'd been feverish for so long, he'd entirely lost the sensation in his arms and legs. And though the relief was wonderful, it wasn't much unlike the feeling he'd been imagining for days.

It was difficult to stand when he voice asked him to rise, "Please Zuko, get up!" but he fought through, something telling him he needed to do it for the voice.

_"Zuko, darling, have you washed behind your ears yet?" Ursa asked._

_"Mom!" he groaned, "of course I have!" But he quickly tucked the cloth up behind his left ear, and then his right, looking back over his shoulder to see if she had spotted him. Of course she had, as mothers always do._

_"I'm old enough to do this alone!" He argued as she reached forward with a smile, taking the rag from his hands._

_"You are only four, Zuko. It's okay to need your mother's help."_

_"I need no one's help!" And he tucked his arms across his chest as she washed his ears for him and rinsed the cloth in his bath water._

"I'm fine, I can do this alone," Zuko uttered, and yet still he was only partially aware of his surroundings, of the water that was releasing the ache from his muscles, that was being poured down his throat. His clothing was being pulled off, his body was sliding under, supported by the arms of another.

"Don't be so stubborn, fire breath," a voice above the arms responded, "you can barely keep your eyes open." That voice, where had he heard that voice before? "It's not like I want to help you, either, so don't forget that."

Zuko nodded; he wouldn't forget.

_Ursa tucked him in under heavy blankets. "Stay warm, my prince." She kissed his head as she wrapped him even more tightly in the covers._

_"I will." He allowed himself a smile and he watched her fade into the darkness of the hallway. He sighed and drew his hand from the blankets, trying desperately to summon fire in his palm. Of course it wouldn't come, not now. He would have to keep practicing._

"Zuko, come on, get under these blankets." he didn't want to, his flesh felt as if it were burning from his bones, melting.

"Please no, don't make me," his hands clawed outward weakly, reaching for the source of the voice. "I'm so, so hot."

"You have to sweat out this fever, Zuko. You can't do this, you're not in the fire nation anymore, the nights here are cold." He does not move again as he is tucked up into the blankets.

There is a feeling deep in his gut, this appreciation for the person giving him so much attention. And that voice, he just can't place it, oh how he wishes he could place it.

His eyes flutter to a close just as he is maneuvered into resting his head in the lap of the voice.

_"Oh, Zuko! You've done it! I am so proud of you."_

_And of course, it is Ursa who engulfs Zuko in a hug after the small flame in his hand extinguishes. Pride rips through him, so powerful he nearly begins to cry._

_Over his mother's shoulder, he looks for his father's eyes. When those eyes are trained on the infant Azula, gurgling fire and giggling, Zuko's cries fall from his throat and he feels something new; something just as powerful. Jealousy._

When Zuko wakes up his eyes focus immediately on a shade of blue so brilliant, he can't breathe.

Sokka's lips curl up on the side of his face. "Hmph. I'm not sure if I should be happy you're awake or not." His hand finds the prince's forehead. "The fever is gone." The man turns to leave. "I'll bring you some tea."

"Sokka," the name tastes strange on Zuko's tongue, but he licks at it anyway, "wait."


	2. One

Author's Note: Though I am aware this might be a little different from the actual show plot, please forgive me. It needs to be so I can write this. In Avatar, we only see a few small parts of Ba Sing Se. I hope to make the city seem as grand as it truly is through this story- how easy it really is to get lost in the cracks. Thank you so much for the reviews this has already received. I will try to make updates regular. I'm thinking every Friday night, if possible. I have a lot of other fiction in the works, for other sites, and for my own personal collections. I aspire to be a famous author, after all! On to the story!

* * *

**Three Weeks Prior**

Inside the Jasmine Dragon, Zuko couldn't stop his lungs from fluctuating. "Zuko, you do not sound very well."

"Uncle, I am fine," Zuko insisted as another cough forced itself from his chest. "It's just a cold."

"Some tea will do you good then, Zuko. Here, have a cup. Take your break. I will deal with the customers."

"I am fine, Uncle," Zuko shot back, his hands shakily grabbing at two steaming cups of green tea.

Iroh shook his head. "It is not wise to ignore me." And so, he reached up and grabbed Zuko's shoulders, forcing him down gently. He removed one cup from Zuko and nodded at the other. "Drink it. It is good for the soul!" And he left the boy in the back corner of the store to sip his tea alone.

At some point, Zuko wasn't quite sure when, he'd stumbled outside for another coughing fit. Iroh found him and sighed. "Zuko, I believe it is time for you to go home and rest. Find sleep, and I will find you later tonight. I will bring us home some steaming dumplings."

Zuko sighed and his eyes met Iroh's. "Thank you Uncle." He removed his apron and set it in Iroh's outstretched hand.

Iroh nodded and smiled. "A man needs his rest, Zuko."

...

"I'm back!" Sokka announced as he pulled off his boots.

Katara immediately appeared in the doorway. "Sokka! We were worried about you. Why'd you leave without telling anyone?"

"I didn't think I'd be gone for so long. Anyway, I brought food."

"Not really necessary," Toph announced, her mouth visibly full, "Twinkletoes went out to get some a while ago. I'm the last one eating!"

Sokka's eyebrows furrowed. "Well, I guess all this food is mine, then! Mind if I join you, Toph?"

"No," she responded, and then heartily began shoving her face again. Sokka ate beside her for a few quiet moments, but he wasn't very hungry anyway. He'd eaten while out and then thought randomly he should bring food home to placate Katara.

"I'm going for a walk," he stated then, rising from his half-eaten food.

"You just got back! You can't just go out again!" Katara demanded, crossing her arms over her chest. "I won't allow it."

"Oh Katara, put a cork in it! I'll be home soon." Sokka ducked out of the building quickly before Katara decided to freeze him or something.

After wandering around for a bit he recognized a face, though for a moment he wasn't entirely sure. And then the scar was turned in his direction and he was certain he was staring at Zuko. Immediately his hand twitched in anticipation of the feel of his boomerang, but he hesitated. "Not in Ba Sing Se, Sokka, not here. Now's not the time, anyway. Tomorrow, definitely." Sokka reasoned with himself as he watched Zuko hand over his apron to an old man. Just as he turned in Sokka's direction, Sokka turned on his heel and ran, as far away from the fire bender as possible.

...

"Here, you eat the last dumpling."

Zuko refused, pushing the dumpling back at Iroh with his chopsticks. "Uncle, you should eat this."

"Nonsense. You are ill! Of course you should have the last bit of the meal!" Iroh would not take the refusal, and when Zuko opened his mouth to say no again, Iroh shoved the dumpling right in.

Zuko chewed it, but only after he shot a glare at Iroh. "I will be fine. It's just a cold." But as he swallowed the dumpling, his head seemed to ache more.

...

Sokka shook off his boots harshly and stripped out of his top layer of clothing. "Well, someone's hot!" Aang remarked. He was leaning against the wall opposite of Sokka, spinning rocks in between his fingers.

"Just a little flustered," Sokka answered, looking up at the boy. He gathered his clothes and began walking to his room.

"Katara's looking for you, Sokka!" Aang called, suddenly remembering. Sokka heard the rocks that had been spinning between the boy's fingers clang on the floor and he knew Aang had gotten up to follow him.

"Tell her I'm going to bed!" Sokka shouted over his shoulder as he stepped up his pace. He quickly shut the screen door behind him as he stepped over the entryway to his room and flopped down onto the blankets he'd bunched up on the floor earlier that morning. He was surprised Katara hadn't straightened them up, but it fled his mind quickly. Mostly he was just concerned with what Zuko was doing in Ba Sing Se. Didn't anyone notice him bending fire without a care in the world? Or maybe that was just it- he wasn't bending.

He had seemed a little weak when I saw him, Sokka reasoned, and then quickly sobered his thoughts. "Zuko? Why would I care how weak Zuko is?" he snapped aloud to no one but himself. Though, a twinge of pity settled in his stomach for a few moments. It was not until he was asleep that it finally fell away.

...

Zuko was clearing tables, feeling feverish. The cough had faded, but it was not completely gone. Still, he was well enough to work. As he finished wiping down his least favorite corner table, it tended to house the town drunks and they liked to leave "presents," a new customer ventured in. Zuko turned to greet the customer and offer the standard, "I'll be right with you," when he caught sight of the man clad in blue and his spine stiffened.

Sokka settled into a small table, looking anything but amused. He rested his chin on his hand, careful to lock his eyes on Zuko's. A smirk graced his lips. _I've found you out, Zuko_.

Zuko hastily made his way back behind the counter and grabbed a slip of paper that served as a menu. He casually walked back over to where Sokka was seated and set the paper in front of him. "What can I get for you today?" Teeth clenched, he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Eh, just some green tea will do, I suppose," Sokka responded, pushing the menu back across the small table. The smirk still present, he uttered, "Prince Zuko."

"My name is Lee," Zuko hissed, careful to keep his composure.

"Is that so?" Sokka quipped, "Strange. You look just like someone I know."

"You don't know me." Zuko spun on his heel and pushed his way through the shop to his uncle. Iroh stood calmly, tea brewing under his expert eye. "Green tea to the table over there, Uncle. I'm going back to bed."

Iroh looked up to see which table his nephew was motioning at, but the shop was empty. Iroh shrugged. "Hallucinations. Hm. He must really need his rest!" Cheerfully, he settled back into watching his tea brew.

Zuko threw his apron off in the back room and exited to the alleyway where he could find his way back home. He ran his fingers through his hair. It was still at an awkward length but he didn't mind it so much anymore. But Sokka; he was an annoyance that would have to be eliminated immediately for his Uncle's happiness. For his happiness. Oddly, he hadn't thought of how happy he'd been in the city for a while. Routine does come with a regular amount of comfort, and this life had become his routine.

"Where do you think you're running off to, fire bender?" a familiar voice spat at him. Zuko turned just in time to duck from the flash of metal he could only assume was Sokka's boomerang. He remained crouched low and long enough for it to return to its owner.

"I'm not a fire bender!" His eyes darted around dangerously as he rose from the crouch.

Sokka met him head on. "And I'm not a lemur!"

Zuko narrowed his eyes. "You aren't a lemur. Is that supposed to make sense?"

Sokka scoffed. "Just tell me what you're up to, Zuko!" Of course it was like the water tribe boy to want to know all the details of the elaborate plan that Zuko did not actually have.

"Nothing!" Zuko responded, almost too quickly.

"I won't tell you where Aang is!" Sokka retorted, though Zuko had not even mentioned the avatar.

"I didn't ask you where he is. Right now I don't even care." Zuko coughed and looked down at his feet. "I'm tired."

This halted Sokka. His arms fell; they had been raised for an attack. "Tired?"

Zuko looked up from the ground and for a brief moment his exhaustion rested in his eyes. Sokka nearly took a step back, his eyes were that intense, that emotional. Zuko blinked and the emotions were gone. He had always been good at wearing a mask. "Tired." He sidestepped Sokka and walked past him. "I could have killed you by now if I wasn't." He glanced back at Sokka, who was stunned with the realization. "It was dumb of you to assume I wouldn't attack. You only had a boomerang. What would you have done if I would have been a fire bender?" After a few more quiet steps toward his home, he thought about his near rage in the tea shop, how hard it had been to control himself. "Don't come back to the tea shop," he uttered just loud enough to know Sokka had heard him.

He did not wait for a response.


	3. Two

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews! I hope this chapter is likeable enough… I'm not used to getting reviews so early on, it's a tad bit frightening and intimidating! Thank you though, really. You keep me motivated. Still, I own nothing of the Avatar world! In case you had forgotten. On to the tale!

* * *

Sokka was not one to listen to orders from anyone, especially not a suspicious fire bender with a scar that was all too familiar for comfort. And in fact, Zuko was not at all surprised when he looked up from organizing leaves for Iroh to discover Sokka had taken residence at the same table he had the day before. He cleared his throat, still stuck with illness, and huffed. "So much for peace," he uttered, grabbing a menu but knowing it would not be necessary. Sokka was just there to pry. Still, he had to act like an upstanding citizen and waiter. Again, he slid the menu in front of Sokka and crossed his arms over his chest. "What can I get for you today?"

Sokka made a show of looking over the paper thoroughly. He scanned words with his fingertips and squinted at the menu as if he were losing sight of the words. After a few overdrawn moments, he looked up at Zuko. "Nothing today, I'll come back tomorrow."

Zuko hesitated, holding back the urge to grab Sokka's arm and leave a permanent reminder of his hatred for the boy on his dark flesh. "I thought I asked you not to come back."

Sokka smirked. "Oh, you did. See you tomorrow, Zuko." The name slid from his throat, rough and taunting.

Zuko cringed and watched the man disappear through the doorway of the shop.

…

Again, Sokka was there to torture Zuko. Oh, Zuko wanted to tear his head from his shoulders, wanted to sear his flesh from his bones. Instead he brought another menu and returned to Iroh with Sokka's order.

The tea was hot as it slid down Sokka's throat. He sucked in a quick breath trying to ease his esophagus when Zuko sauntered over and promptly sat across from Sokka. "Stop coming back here. You will find nothing. I am trying to be normal, Sokka."

The way Zuko uttered his name, as if a secret, as if the most important secret in the universe, spread over decades of glossy words hidden behind teeth, infuriated Sokka. "You need to understand Zuko," and he spit the name back with so much venom he half expected Zuko to flinch, "I will be returning here until I've got you pegged. Until I have you figured out."

Zuko threaded his fingers in his hair. "There's nothing to figure out!" A scrape sounded across the floor and Sokka glared as Zuko stood.

"There's always something to figure out about you."

Zuko pushed his chair back in and turned away. "Not this time."

…

The next day was no different. Sokka showed up and Zuko grew annoyed. He grew so annoyed in fact, as the days went on, that finally he reached a plateau and stopped feeling anything at all.

…

Of course, he was unsure of when he'd taken his first step down from the plateau; when Sokka's eyes began smiling at him as he entered through the front door of the shop instead of narrowing with suspicions. But it had happened.

Zuko was less hostile when handing the menu to the water tribe boy, who'd technically had the thing memorized from his third visit onwards. It was only one page and he only liked a few of the teas advertised. Zuko too had memorized something. Sokka liked green tea. So, even as the menu left his fingers for those dark hands, he knew Sokka's lips would curve up and utter "green tea, please."

And so he brought the green tea. And he sat at the table. It occurred to Zuko that perhaps it was friendship, the thing that had formed between the two of them. Or maybe he was misjudging, maybe Sokka was still trying to harvest information from him about his plans. But, no, he was trying to change his ways. He was trying to trust more.

Funny, how fast things had changed.

…

"That cough still isn't gone, Zuko," Sokka notes, sipping his hot tea gingerly.

Zuko waved dismissively, fighting the itch in his throat. "I'm fine. Just a bug, it will pass."

Sokka poked his tea across the table and on to Zuko's hand. "Here, finish this. I have to get going anyway." Sokka stands and stretches. "Get better, okay?" For a second, he feels odd telling a past enemy to feel better, but the oddness dissipates just as quickly as it had appeared.

Zuko nods and glances down at the tea. "Thanks." And from under the legs of the chair Sokka lazily left pushed out, Zuko watches the boy's legs disappear. He takes the cup in both hands, blows gently on the steam, and takes a sip.

His lips graze a texture he is unsure of for merely a moment, and then close around it anyway. Next time Sokka offers him tea, he'll remember to wipe the saliva from the cup before he drinks. He finishes the tea and tucks both chairs back in under the table.

…

"Sokka, where do you go off to every day?" Katara demanded, threatening eyes looming under knitted brows.

"For tea," he answered simply.

"Tea?" Aang asked.

"Tea." And he was out the door again, boomerang at his hip.

"He's not lying, just in case you're wondering," Toph suddenly announced.

Katara huffed.

…

"So when do you get out of here?" Zuko looked at Sokka, a question on his eyebrow. "When do you get off?"

"At night, I suppose," Zuko answered.

"Zuko, I did not mean when you relieve yourself. I meant when are you done with work?"

A very undignified blush swept itself across Zuko's cheeks. "Yeah, at night, you know, after working hours."

Sokka smiled. "Are you off tomorrow?"

Without hesitation, "I can be."

Sokka nodded and finished his tea. His visits to the shop seemed to be getting shorter and shorter. There was a question here, a smile there. Zuko wondered if Sokka was growing bored of him and then, "So we can go somewhere tomorrow, then? I found this really great place on the outskirts of town…"

"Sure," Zuko responded, swirling the tea around in his cup.

"See you bright and early." He left with a wave.

The trek home was light on Sokka. He was smiling, and for the first time since they had entered Ba Sing Se, he felt good. And then he rounded the corner to find a pile of rubble where the house had been.

His eyes widened and his fingers instantly fled to his boomerang. "Guys?" his voice croaked. For hours, he searched the remains. Nothing was left. Nothing. Though he was certain of their escape- evidence of earth bending was left a few houses down, and the was an oddly placed trail of melting ice shards all over the side of an old building that look uninhabited. After working it for a bit, Sokka managed to pry the door of the home open and slip inside. He shut the door behind him and settled into the corner of what must have been a family room. He felt guilty. Had he been there, might the attack have been prevented? Stupid, he had been with Zuko! Zuko of all people! That Fire Nation prince who'd been banished at such a fragile age, who'd hunted him and his friends for months. But he could not blame Zuko for this. He could not blame Zuko for how he had neglected his friends. He could only blame himself. As he settled in for the night, cold settling over him in wispy tendrils, beckoning him toward freezing, frustrated tears littered his eyes.

…

Still, the following morning, Sokka walked back to the tea house and settled in at his regular seat.

Zuko was in the back, shaking out his hair when he saw Sokka walk in. Something was wrong- it was visible in how the once confident man sat with his shoulders pulled forward, slouching against the table.

Zuko stepped out and made his way over to Sokka silently. "Ready to go?"

Sokka looked up, his eyes very evidently exhausted. Clearly, he had not slept well. "Sure." A half smile fluttered at the corners of his lips.

Zuko looked at him, so worn, his only friend. "Are you okay?"

"Today will make me okay. Something happened- I'll tell you along the way, I suppose. I just don't have it in me right now." He stood and immediately slapped his hand over his mouth to stifle a yawn.

"Okay, you can take your time."

Sokka looked back at Zuko lazily. "Thanks."

And then Sokka forgot entirely about what was bothering him, even if just for that moment. Because for the first time in those few weeks of becoming such fast friends, Zuko smiled.


	4. Three

Author's Note: Thank you all for all your wonderful reviews. I deeply appreciate them all. I hope you enjoy this chapter. It's a little bit… mature. And okay, I understand things are a bit "quick" but here's the thing. They are teenagers. And they are desperate for love and emotion and something NEW. But don't worry, you'll get more detail on their sudden friendship soon.

* * *

Zuko closed his eyes, exhaustion settling in behind his lids. "How much more are we going to have to walk, Sokka?" His fist collided with the sight on either side of his nose. _Rub it away, Zuko, just rub it away._

"Not much more! It's just up ahead."

Still, they had literally been walking for what felt like all day, and all signs of civilization had disappeared hours prior. "I thought you said you stumbled upon this place," Zuko grumbled.

Sokka separated a dense amount of shrubbery and stepped through. "Here it is." Sokka motioned around them with wide arms.

Admittedly, it was the best camping spot Zuko had ever seen. Quiet and hidden with a creek splitting the darkest green land he'd ever seen, a bright gash in the flat flesh of the earth. "I figured we could spend the night if that's okay," Sokka added, "You know, since we walked all day to get here."

"Sure!" a little too quickly, the affirmative fell from Zuko's lips. "Uh," he mumbled, tucking his hand into the hair at the nape of his neck. "I mean…"

Sokka shook his head and gave a weary grin. "Don't worry about it. Come on, let's catch some fish for dinner!" He dropped his belongings onto the ground and then plopped right down next to the creek. Patting a spot next to him, he watched the water slip over his toes. A few small fish swam by, but he wouldn't waste his efforts. They needed a medium to large size fish to compliment the few things Sokka had tucked in his bag to eat for the next few days… by himself.

He missed Katara. He missed Aang and Toph. But mostly, he missed the assurance that things could and would be alright.

When Zuko sat next to him, Sokka had to fight back the urge to hug him. He wasn't about to spill his woes out on a still-stranger. Especially not Zuko. Even if they had become rather close rather quickly.

Zuko coughed. Still sick, Sokka noted mentally, give him extra fish. "So where are your friends?" Zuko asked quietly, plucking a short knife from his hip.

"My other friends, you mean?" Sokka asked, a cocky sort of grin turning up his mouth.

Zuko flushed. "Yeah, them."

At that moment, a chunky red fish swayed by, unable to predict its untimely death quickly enough as Sokka's spearhead gouged through it. "They're gone." He tossed the fish aside after ensuring its actual death.

Zuko did not ask him to elaborate, somehow he knew Sokka would.

…

Their tent went up quickly and quietly. Zuko was unsure of how to handle that as he spun the skewered fish around above the flame in his palm.

After it was done, Sokka joined Zuko for their makeshift dinner. "Camping like real men!" Sokka announced as he sat down.

Zuko smiled and handed over a cooked fish. "Yeah. I haven't done this in a while. It's… interesting."

Sokka stared at him for a minute, plucking the meat of the fish from its bones with his fingers. "You know," he stated matter-of-factly, "you look real handsome when you smile." He slid a sliver of fish into his mouth, nodding to himself.

Zuko's gaze drifted off. "Oh, uh, thank you."

"Sure, no problem." A quiet moment drifted between them, and a lazy breeze got caught up in the trees around them. And then, "They were attacked."

Somehow Sokka knew it was okay to tell Zuko in that moment. "Oh," was all the response Zuko could muster.

"I found evidence of a struggle, though I'm not entirely sure what happened. I'm just… I just wish I would have been with them. Maybe I could have helped."

Zuko's stomach sunk. _If only he hadn't been with me._

"It'll be okay. I just don't know where we they will go next. I'm the plan guy! I decide. Or at least, I help plan the trips. Now I don't even know where to start."

Zuko nodded, discarding his fish. His hunger faded at the mention of Sokka's regret. "I'm sorry you weren't with them."

Sokka shook his head, a piece of fish poking out from between his lips unflatteringly. "No, don't worry about it. I like spending time with you." His tongue picked up the fish and pulled it into his mouth. "It's no one's fault but my own."

"You can't blame yourself for their being attacked, Sokka," Zuko reasoned.

Sokka looked upset at these particular words. "If your Uncle was attacked when you weren't around, wouldn't you blame yourself?"

"Yes." No hesitation again. Sokka had a way of pulling answers from Zuko's mouth that Zuko himself was unsure he'd even want to answer if it were anyone else. But with Sokka…

"Exactly." Sokka sucked down the last of his fish when he noticed Zuko had barely touched his. "Hey, Zuko, shouldn't you eat? You're still sick."

"Nah, I'm good. I'll be okay."

Sokka narrowed his eyes. "You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm positive. Thanks, though." A yawn registered with his lungs before it did with his mind. "Oh, wow, I guess I'm tired."

"Go to bed if you want. I can clean this up." Sokka gestured to the mess they had made while eating. Fish bones were strewn about randomly, and Sokka actually enjoyed waking up to something clean. Fresh morning, fresh start.

"Thanks." Zuko tucked himself into bed and was asleep before his head hit the sleeping bag he was nestled into.

Of course, when Sokka stumbled in, Zuko stirred.

"Sorry!" Sokka uttered after he'd accidentally taken a few steps on top of Zuko's legs. "Tent's a bit small!"

"That's okay," Zuko whispered, closing his eyes once more.

Sokka continued to rustle next to him for a few minutes and then took a deep breath. "Zuko?"

Zuko opened one eye and turned his head to face Sokka. "Hmm?"

"Do you think I'll find them?"

"Yeah," Zuko pulled his arm from the bag and reached out to pat Sokka reassuringly on the shoulder. "and if you don't, you can always come stay with Uncle and me."

"You mean that? I'll hold you to it if you do."

"I do," Zuko promised, a grin hidden from Sokka's view in the dark shadows of the night.

"Thanks Zuko."

Neither of them could be completely sure of what sparked in the air at that moment. Maybe it was the reassurance, the promise of warmth that nestled itself so deep in Sokka's heart.

Maybe it was a friend, his first true friend that wasn't his Uncle, that made Zuko's face burn like he had said something particularly naughty in front of chaste women.

But whatever the reason, Sokka felt a sudden urge to move forward and press his lips to Zuko's, and this is precisely what he did.

For a second, the heat in Zuko's face registered, that comfort groaning deep in his chest. Sokka pulled back, the brushing of their lips barely more than innocent, but still Zuko was struck. "What was that for?" he wondered aloud, quietly. He was suddenly very awake, very aware of the pounding in his chest.

"I, uh."

"I'm not gay," Zuko began rambling, "I like girls! I mean, women! They're beautiful! Sokka I-"

"No, no, stop! Don't say any more. I'm just, uh," he tugged his legs free from his sleeping bag roughly. "I'm going to go… uh…"

Sokka stumbled out of the tent and into the forest. "Not gay! What! I'm not gay, either! I was just showing affection!" He threw his arms up, and then tucked them around his chest. "Hrmph. He should come and apologize." Sokka shot a glare in the direction of the tent and then decided to settle into the crook at the base of a tree. "Whatever. I'll just sit here until he decides to come and find me. Jerk. I'm not gay, either." He settled down against the tree, his eyelids fluttered to a close. "Jerk."

Zuko pressed his eyelids together, forcing his thoughts down, down, down. And in the spot where his thoughts settled, another feeling nestled, this delicious knot just above the region between his legs, a nice, tight little something.

Without thinking too much, Zuko slid his hands back into the sleeping bag. His fingers grazed the skin beneath his shirt, inching lower still, as the tingle from the kiss resurfaced on his lips. What was he doing? Sokka was a… a friend, now. A friend. Nothing more! But still, his body jerked up in response as his touch grazed the most sensitive area yet. Heat flooded through him, a desperate whimper slipped from his lips as his fingers closed around his affliction.

Sokka slid one finger into the waistband of his pants, his eyes still clamped shut around the light of the moon. "Well, who will it hurt?" he asked the night silently, pushing his hands in… "No, not until he apologizes." He yanked his hands free again. A long inhale ended with a loud yawn. Darkness crept up over him and before he knew it, sleep overtook him.

Zuko was only vaguely aware of the name sputtered from his lips as the extreme pleasure weaved through him. Nearly immediately, he too gave over to sleep. Only the animals heard him mutter "Sokka" while he dreamed.

…

The next morning, Sokka made his way back to the tent. "Wake up! You owe me an apology, Zuko." It only took Sokka a moment to realize the man in the cover of the tent was shaking, breaths perforated and uneven. "Zuko?" The anger of the previous night forgotten, he reached out to feel Zuko's forehead and retracted his hand just as quickly. He hissed, "You're burning up!" to himself.

So he went to the creek for some water and slowly dripped it all over Zuko's skin until the steam was gone and his body temperature was manageable. And then he stripped the sick man down to his underclothes and begged, "Please Zuko, get up!" By some small miracle, Zuko managed to stand and the two boys made it to the water. Sokka submerged him in the cool water, a deeper section of creek that really didn't help that much. Zuko began tugging away from Sokka.

"I'm fine, I can do this alone."

Sokka snorted. "Don't be so stubborn, fire breath. You can barely keep your eyes open. It's not like I want to help you, either, so don't forget that." Zuko nodded, relaxing again into Sokka's arms.

Sokka helped Zuko redress and lead him back to the tent. "Zuko, come on, get under these blankets." He stacked the sleeping bags on top of each other.

"Please no, don't make me. I'm so, so hot." Zuko grasped for Sokka weakly, his arms twitching.

"You have to sweat out this fever, Zuko. You can't do this, you're not in the fire nation anymore, the nights here are cold." And Sokka settled in behind him, letting Zuko's head fall into his lap. He ran his fingers through the boy's hair for a moment, nails scratching at his scalp.

Zuko sweat in his sleep. So much heat radiated off of him that Sokka slept outside of the tent again.

The next morning while Sokka was making tea, he heard Zuko stirring in the tent. When he got inside, just as he was about to press his palm to feel for Zuko's temperature, golden eyes opened quickly and bored into his.

His lips twisedt in distaste. "Hmph. I'm not sure if I should be happy you're awake or not." His hand found the prince's forehead on their own accord and registered a coolness not there the day before. "The fever is gone. I'll bring you some tea."

He was nearly out of the tent when the silence cracked behind him. "Sokka, wait."


End file.
